PELL CITY — Mayor Bill Hereford said Jim Golden withdrew his acceptance as the city’s new fire chief.

Hereford made the announcement at Monday night’s council meeting.

“I’m very saddened to advise you that Jim has withdrawn his acceptance as fire chief,” Hereford said. “He and his family could not work this out financially.”

At last week’s work session the mayor and council debated the starting pay for the new fire chief. Some council members felt the new fire chief should have started the job with a salary of $49,000, while the mayor and other council members thought the city could offer the new chief $57,000 annually because of his experience.

“I really hate it,” Hereford said. “He thought he was an excellent candidate for chief, and we thought he was an excellent candidate for our new fire chief…Nobody is mad at anyone. Finances are the big thing.”

Hereford said it was evident that Golden was disappointed to withdraw his acceptance as fire chief, but it was impossible for him to take the job financially.

“I think it really hurt him,” Hereford said.

Hereford said Golden withdrew his name for fire chief Monday afternoon.

At the council meeting two weeks ago, the mayor and council voted to hire Golden as the fire chief by a 4-2 vote. Councilmen Greg Gossett and James McGowan voted against hiring Golden. Both councilmen wanted to hire Jim Parsons, the interim fire chief, as the new permanent fire chief.

Hereford, along with council members Donnie Guinn, Donnie Todd and Dot Wood, voted to hire Golden, who is originally from Pell City, as the new fire chief.

Golden works for the city of Alabaster Fire & Rescue Service, and the Alabama Fire College in Tuscaloosa.

Parsons, who has run the fire department for more than one year, will continue as the interim fire chief, Hereford said Monday.

Parsons does not hold a bachelor’s degree, which is a requirement for the permanent fire chief’s job. However, Parsons said he should have a degree in hand by November.

The degree requirement became an issue for the council last year, after several candidates for the permanent fire chief’s job were interviewed shortly after former Fire Chief Mike Sewell retired.

The council only interviewed three candidates this time around, and Parsons was not included in the interview process.

The candidates interviewed last month included Golden, Floyd Wilks Jr., of Trussville, who is a captain with the Birmingham Fire and Rescue, and Jeffrey Monroe of Five Points, who operates a consulting business related to the fire and EMS industries and who is also a part-time firefighter and paramedic for the Childersburg Fire Department.

It appears the council will go back to the drawing board to see what path it will take with the news that Golden will not step in as the new fire chief.

“We will discuss this issue at our next work session,” Hereford said.

Contact David Atchison at datchison@dailyhome.com.